Afiq Sapuan

I build email automations for eCommerce brands | CatchAsCopyCan

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

Hey, everyone. Afiq here.

I build welcome email flows for DTC brands in 24 hours.

You'll find me writing emails almost every day to my list. It's my dwelling place.

A little digital man-cave...

I'm looking to connect with DTC brands to help with their email marketing.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

I'll burn my midnight to build my website.

Squarespace, Google Docs, a cup of tea, and elbow grease with my copywriting to come up with a home page and maybe a blog article.

First things first, I'll watch some videos on building a website.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

Most brands lose their sales from emails because of one thing.

They're not getting into the customer's mind.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

@AndrewWriteCopy Gotta get in your customer's mind.

Now I know that sounds cliche.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

@kott_studio Better to start with one than none.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

The biggest lesson I learned in starting my agency is from The Art Of War:

Speed is the essence of war.

The quality may not be great; my website is dull, my blogs unpolished, my content scattered...

But it's better to stack things that exist than to ponder what needs to be done.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

I had a little discussion on what front end offer I should build.

There were a few ideas: ebooks, past training seminars, guided case studies, etc.

I'm thinking of sticking with an ebook (or maybe a physical one) since I had a few books written.

Besides, it can be a legacy product haha!

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

@AndrewWriteCopy Encountered a handful when I started out.

What I did was to farm as much case studies from my work as possible and published/talk about it.

The content, in return, made more future sales that what was lost.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

Borrowed Traffic Secrets by @russellbrunson yesterday from the library.

Looks like I'll be building up my site and media channels pretty soon.

First up will be my website, it's been neglected for ages now.

Next should be my email list where I used to email every single day on email marketing, client queries, some behind the scenes tips, and more.

Anyone wants to get into my email list?

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

I'm going to write an email marketing book.

I've been an email marketer for over 2 years.

I think it's about time I share the mistakes and lessons brands have encountered with their emails.

Also, I think it's a great way to grow my list...

So this book is going to be my lead magnet because knowledge should always be shared.

But before I open up my Google Docs and get started on writing the scope...

What are some challenges you've faced with email marketing for your business?

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

@kadiancy WFH is better imo

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

Oh, to work remotely and help out an agriculture business...

That'll be a dream come true.

The dream is to be the email marketing agency for agricultural businesses.

Traditional businesses are dying in Singapore and it's evident, slowing growing rampant.

Second or third gen founders are not taking over or are not on par with the legacy.

But they have the tools and skillset to sustain or scale the business.

It's sad to see how many of such businesses fading away, gone into the ether because there's no one taking over, and savvy businesses are outshining the traditional.

What if we can make traditional businesses savvy?

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

Lookie here, been eyeing to learn Omnisend for a while now

[Chris Orzechowski @chrisorzy]

How to escape the permanent marketer underclass:

The #1 way to get stuck at “the kids table” as an email marketer is to be too afraid to operate inside of your clients’ email software.

I’ve seen some marketers get super overwhelmed when they log into a new tool because there’s so many buttons and options and settings. So they log out and say “I’ll just do strategy and creative.”

Ok, sure, fine.

Everyone who knows what they’re doing inside an ESP is going to run laps around you.

It’s just a piece of software. You’re not trying to land a rocket on Mars.

You’re always going to be limited when it comes to strategy if you don’t know how to max out your email software’s abilities. Imagine being a mechanic who doesn’t know how to use the tools in their garage.

Spend a few hours under the hood and you’re going to get all kinds of ideas for automations, campaigns, segmented mailings, and cross-channel stuff you can do to make your clients (and yourself) more money.

If you want to become a master ESP technician, I’ve got good news:

@omnisend has an awesome Certification Training Program… and it’s FREE:

- Built specifically for agencies & email marketing freelancers
- Less than 4 hours to complete
- 45 on-demand lessons
- 8 practical modules
- Covers: @omnisend account setup, deliverability & compliance, audience management,
segmentation, campaigns, automation, reporting & analytics
- Certificate of completion
- Shareable certification badge

Sign up here (it’s free):

https://t.co/Q56iqmDk6V

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

I don't wanna be a millionaire.

I wanna be happy writing emails...

That makes millions.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

We don't work with anybody who enters our door.

We work with those who qualify to work with us.

There's a reason why we have an application form on our site.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

If you could hire me for $0, what problems would you want me to help with?

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

I know I wanna be the Westside Barbell of the email marketing world.

I don't want to be the typical professional type of email marketer.

We're gonna be funky, we're gonna have fun with our emails.

We don't want any of that corporate fluff near or around us.

Our email credits are NOT for that.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

Much agreed. Saw high opens and ctr.

[World’s #1 Retention Economist @lalasretention]

"If you disagree, you're wrong" kind of post:

eComm brands will make a TON more revenue when they stop focusing on image- and design-heavy emails.

Just craft interesting, entertaining, text-rich emails.

There's a word for it: edutainment.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

I miss being a powerlifter.

I'd walk into the gym, lift heavy stuff, rest 3-5 minutes and walk out huffin' and puffin'.

Now I'm just losing weight ever since I've gout.

[Afiq Sapuan @afiqsapuan]

I turned 25 in May.

Here are my 25 email marketing tips you can implement today:

• Build your list, always
• Segment your email list
• small caps are fine to use
• Use narratives in your emails
• Always have a campaign planner
• Don't use the default templates
• Write personally, not professionally
• Don't forget a CTA with every email
• Come off as personal, not professional
• Look into paid acquisition to grow your list
• Don't flood your emails with lots of graphics
• Have a welcome sequence, even if its 3 emails
• Be funky in your emails (literally, have fun with it)
• Don't use default automated emails for purchases
• Drive traffic from socials to your website or email list
• Write different copy for different segments of your list
• Run a deliverability test before starting your campaigns
• Use a custom domain instead of the email software default
• Be consistent in writing emails to your customers or clients
• Use your customer's first name in your emails via Liquid Text
• Send an email at least once a week; 3 a week is a decent spot
• Any lead magnet is a good lead magnet if you haven't done any
• Launch campaigns should be planned out at least a month prior
• There's no minimum word count for emails, nor max word count
• Involve other team members to write the emails to your customers